Vilnius - US Secretary of State John Kerry was to meet EU
ministers on Saturday to rally support for military strikes against Syria,
after a G20 summit failed to resolve bitter international divisions on the
issue.

Kerry will press the case for punitive action against
Syria after what the US says was a chemical weapons attack by the regime of
President Bashar Assad near Damascus.

On Friday, US President Barack Obama and Russian leader
Vladimir Putin failed to bridge their differences at the summit of top global
powers in Saint Petersburg.

Just over half of the G20 states signed up to a statement
calling for a "strong" response to last month's alleged chemical
attack.

Kerry is to hold talks with the European Union's 28
foreign ministers in Lithuania, which currently holds the EU's rotating chair,
with the bloc itself sharply split.

"The costs of inaction here are much greater than
the costs of action," he wrote in Friday's Huffington Post.

Only France has said it is ready to take part in military
action, while Britain - whose parliament voted against any involvement - and
Denmark have expressed support.

France was one of four European nations - with Britain,
Italy and Spain - that signed a statement at the G20 meeting on Friday calling
for a "strong international response" to the chemical attack, widely
attributed to the Assad regime.

The statement, signed by 11 of the G20 nations - but not
by Germany - said the response would "send a clear message that this kind
of atrocity can never be repeated".

It did not specify military action and European diplomats
said the language remained vague.

But while Obama said the world could not "stand idly
by", Putin warned it would be "outside the law" to attack
without the UN's blessing.

Helping Syria

Putin also said Russia would "help Syria" if
the US were to strike, pointing to existing military, economic and humanitarian
cooperation.

Washington has prepared the ground for possible strikes,
evacuating non-essential embassy staff from Beirut and urging Americans to
avoid all travel to Lebanon and southern Turkey.

As well as the stubborn international differences, the US
administration is still scrambling to win backing from Congress for any action
against Syria.

Congress reconvenes on Monday and Obama addresses the
nation on Tuesday. But he acknowledged that convincing Congress to back
military action against the Syrian regime would be a "heavy lift".

"I understand the scepticism," the US president
said.

Obama made several calls to Republican and Democratic
lawmakers during his flight home from Russia, a senior administration official
said, declining to elaborate.

The world is still waiting for a much-anticipated report
by UN inspectors on the deadly 21 August attacks that left hundreds dead.

At the G20, French President Francois Hollande, vowed to
wait for the UN report before joining any military action, a decision welcomed
by Germany.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle urged the UN to
publish its report "as quickly as possible" to help Europe's divided
leaders determine a response.

Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt told reporters it
was essential to wait for the UN report as "it will be the best picture we
can get from any source".

"The Indians, the Brazilians, the Chinese and others
don't really think that information from US intelligence is enough, and that's
the world we live in," he said.

Russia and China - both veto-wielding permanent members
of the UN Security Council - have on three occasions voted down resolutions
that would have put pressure on Assad.

On Friday, the Russian foreign ministry warned the United
States against targeting Syria's chemical arsenal in any attacks.

Later on Saturday, Kerry is due to fly to Paris for talks
with French officials. He will meet Arab League leaders there on Sunday to
update them on Syria and on progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

He will travel on to London for talks late on Sunday with
Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas, before flying home Monday.

Pope Francis has appealed for a peaceful solution to the
crisis, calling on the world to unite on Saturday in a day of fasting and
prayer for Syria. He will lead the way with a five-hour vigil in St Peter's
Square.

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